Blackburn Rovers ordered to pay £2.25 million to former manager Henning Berg after 57 days in charge

Henning Berg will receive £39,473 for each of his 57 days as manager of
Blackburn Rovers after a High Court judge dismissed attempts by the club’s
Indian owners, Venky’s, to avoid a £2.25 million compensation bill following
his sacking.

Berg, who was fired last December after winning just one of his 10 games, was not in court to hear Judge Mark Pelling throw out the Venky’s case and reject their “unrealistic” application to appeal his ruling, which the club’s QC, Neil Berragan, argued was “legally flawed”.

Blackburn and Venky’s could yet pursue their battle at the Court of Appeal, however.

The conclusion of the two-day hearing, at the Manchester Civil Justice Centre, resulted in Blackburn and Venky’s being ridiculed as an outfit that was “out of control” by the club’s own legal representatives.

Claims by Venky’s that Blackburn managing director Derek Shaw did not possess the authority to sanction the terms of Berg’s contract – and entitlement to the full compensation of his 2½-year contract – were rejected out of hand as “unheard of” in a submission to court by Olaf Dixon, the deputy chief executive of the League Managers’ Association.

Shaw and Paul Agnew, Blackburn’s operations director, attempted to argue that a meeting with Berg at a Blackburn hotel was only to be a “meet and greet” event.

However, the judge concluded that the agreement reached during that encounter paved the way to a contract which would see Berg paid in full if he was sacked.

Shaw, a former Preston North End chairman, was described by Venky’s lawyers as being “in de facto control of the club and continuing to act without authority and his self-interest”.

A statement on the official Blackburn Rovers website on April 9 appeared to contradict this argument, however, with it being made clear that “the owners would like to state that there is no investigation into this matter with regard to managing director Derek Shaw who continues to have their complete backing and support”.

Despite the accusation against Shaw, Judge Pelling ordered Blackburn to fully compensate Berg within seven days and also ordered the Championship club to pay £20,000 interim costs.

Prior to Blackburn’s decision this month to contest the amount of Berg’s pay-off, the club had paid a first instalment of £562,500 to the Norwegian on Feb 26.

At the time, their failure to fully settle the 43-year-old’s contract was attributed to cash-flow difficulties caused by relegation from the Premier League at the end of the 2011-12 season.

Berg’s solicitors were then informed by Blackburn that the issue would be rectified by the club seeking early receipt of the parachute payment due from the Premier League as a result of relegation. Since Berg’s dismissal, Blackburn also sacked his successor, Michael Appleton, following 67 days in charge.

With Steve Kean having resigned as manager last September, the club have employed three full-time managers this season.

Under caretaker manager Gary Bowyer, Blackburn secured their Championship status at the weekend with a 1-1 draw at home against Crystal Palace which banished the prospect of relegation to League One for the 1995 Premier League champions.

Shaw’s position at Ewood Park remains unclear, with the club’s global adviser, Shebby Singh, understood to be delaying a return from India until the managing director’s situation is resolved following an internal disciplinary investigation.

Berg, meanwhile, has returned to work as a pundit for a Norwegian television station.